Global Week on Entrepreneurship

The current challenge of becoming innovative and entrepreneurial has reached Brazilian organizations. From my observations and work during the past 3 months, since I got back, there is a high demand for innovation, driven by societal changes, by competition and by the global markets... and a big question: how?

Last week was celebrated the global week on entrepreneurship. In Brazil, Endeavor promoted the event with a series of workshops, lectures and presentations around the country, under the theme "bota pra fazer" (something like "let's do it").

Through the events I participated at, it was clear the message: we need to change a culture! Brazilians (and the business/political/cultural environment around) have to:

• Dare to fail - and face society's prejudice against failure
  
• Innovation from bottom-up, full support from top-down
• Persistence, courage and belief
  
• Existence of an "eco-system" for innovation
• Transformative education rather than technical knowledge transfer
  

Another key message, in between the lines, was about social entrepreneurship. The idea that business and entrepreneurs can solve issues such as poverty or AIDS or environmental destruction was said and repeated many times - without using the words "social entrepreneur" or "social business". Those of us operating in such a paradigm should feel like being at the wave crest (na crista da onda). It's exciting and it's the future!

SONHAR PEQUENO OU SONHAR GRANDE DÁ O MESMO TRABALHO!
(to dream small or to dream big: it's the same effort for both)